Monthly Archives: April 2013

Are We Missing Life Around Us?

by April 30, 2013

CJ and I have been realizing that we are always on our phones, or computer, or ipad sadly while the TV is on more often than not.  I am so ashamed even typing that!  It’s to the point where we have A.D.D. without something always “entertaining” us and we no longer value a great conversation or daydreaming.  So often we are engaging on what’s going on in facebook, instagram & twitter we are missing out on what’s going on right in front of us.  And of course what triggered this all is because of Nola.  We don’t want to teach her that this type of behavior is ok nor do we want to miss out on her.

Ironically I dropped my phone and the screen shattered.  I take that as a sign from God that I need to make some changes and here is what I am going to try to do.  I am no longer taking the phone into my bedroom at night and not going to look or partake in any social media on Sundays.  We are also considering getting rid of cable, but I just love the Food Network so much.  We’ll see, maybe I can get to that point eventually :).  One thing I do know, I appreciate the fact that having kids really challenge us to be better people and I know I will always be a work in progress!

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nola’s 9 months….say whaaaat!

by April 24, 2013

You ever have it where you feel like all you do is make food, clean up and then it’s on repeat all the while taking care of your kid?  That’s how this week has felt so far, wowzar.  Anywhoooo last week Nola turned nine months!  It’s nuts to think she’s almost been on this earth for an entire year!  We also can’t imagine our life without this girl and just love her to pieces.

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Thought I’d give you 9 Nola updates in celebration to her 9 months of wonderful existence.

1.  Nola can crawl!  We also have realized our place is incredibly dangerous!  One night we went to Target, Babies R’ Us and Home Depot to baby proof this place and none of those places had what we needed.  And not to digress too much, but that is why I love my Amazon Prime.

2.  Nola has 2 teeth so we are doing our best to remember to brush her pearly whites every day, I must confess sometimes I forget!

3.  She loves to babble and can say mama, typically only when she’s unhappy though 🙁

4.  Nola loves music and bobs her head to the beat.  See the video below of her getting jiggy with it!

5.  She is getting pretty strong and can pull herself up to stand.

6.  She loves life so much she continues to refuse to take regular naps and still doesn’t sleep through the night.  We still love her anyways.

7.  Nola love loves riding in shopping carts.  At Trader Joe’s you would have thought she was  Mayor smiling, waving and babbling to everyone.

8.  She currently is experiencing separation anxiety and likes to have mommy or daddy always near her side.

9.  Nola is in the very low percentile in height and weight, however, she wants everyone to know size doesn’t matter because she was the loudest baby in church this past weekend.  She is sooo loud!

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Boston.

by April 15, 2013

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There’s no sense in what happened today. But while there was overwhelmingly sad news online this evening, there were also stories of countless people offering up their homes, food, and even cab fare to strangers in need. Runners completing the marathon continuing onto the hospitals to donate blood to the wounded.

I came across this open letter from Patton Oswalt and was reminded again that there is always hope as long as there is good out there.

“I remember, when 9/11 went down, my reaction was, “Well, I’ve had it with humanity.”

But I was wrong. I don’t know what’s going to be revealed to be behind all of this mayhem. One human insect or a poisonous mass of broken sociopaths.

But here’s what I DO know. If it’s one person or a HUNDRED people, that number is not even a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of a percent of the population on this planet. You watch the videos of the carnage and there are people running TOWARDS the destruction to help out. (Thanks FAKE Gallery founder and owner Paul Kozlowski for pointing this out to me). This is a giant planet and we’re lucky to live on it but there are prices and penalties incurred for the daily miracle of existence. One of them is, every once in awhile, the wiring of a tiny sliver of the species gets snarled and they’re pointed towards darkness.

But the vast majority stands against that darkness and, like white blood cells attacking a virus, they dilute and weaken and eventually wash away the evil doers and, more importantly, the damage they wreak. This is beyond religion or creed or nation. We would not be here if humanity were inherently evil. We’d have eaten ourselves alive long ago.

So when you spot violence, or bigotry, or intolerance or fear or just garden-variety misogyny, hatred or ignorance, just look it in the eye and think, “The good outnumber you, and we always will.”

who doesn’t love etsy?!

by April 11, 2013

I am a huge fan of Etsy and if you aren’t I think you should!  If I’m looking for a unique gift or something I want to personalize, this is the place to go.  Plus I love the idea of giving or owning something original.  So today I’m going to share some of my favorite Etsy items/stores.

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1.  When some of my closest friend’s were having a baby, I thought it would be neat to give them bracelets with their babies’ birthdate and initials engraved.  I absolutely love these leather bracelets with metal plates by MichelleVerBeeck and as I’m typing this I think I need to order one for myself!

2.  For Valentine’s Day my sweet Nola girl decided I needed to have a new necklace.  Isn’t she the best!?!  So she got me this necklace (in rose gold) from Burnish.  This necklace is a staple piece and looks great when wearing with other necklaces as well.

3.  I can’t say enough about Palomasnest.  I love the simplicity of their pieces and they were featured in Martha Stewart Wedding.  They are widely known for their ring bearer’s plates, but also have a great selection of ring dishes with inspirational quotes.  I got my mom a plate for Christmas one year!

4.  In our home I love hanging up artwork that means something personal or gives us encouragement throughout the day.  This sign by sayhelloshop makes me so happy and I plan on putting it up in our kitchen.  What’s also great about this piece is if I want to, I can customize it by painting it whatever color I choose.

5.  Vol25 is one of my favorite shops.  I love pretty much all her artwork and her blog!  This poster is so cute and resonates to CJ and I because in the past we have moved a lot and no matter where we are, we make each other our home, am I right or am I right :).  I should add this store is having a 50% sale going on right now through the 16th, just use the code TAXSALE.

6.  CJ and I met in Chicago and we lived there for about 5 years.  So needless to say lots of special memories lie in that city and we will be the first to admit it’s our favorite place.  GoingUnderground has this awesome artwork that lists major city’s neighborhood’s and train stops.  I am saving my pennies to get this piece on Chicago and can’t wait to put that up in our living room.  Clark/Division was my stop!

7.  Nola recently found this camera by Twigcreative and desperately wants the yellow one…  That girl of ours.  Anyways, I do agree this wooden camera is pretty cute!

8.  It’s no surprise Etsy also is the place to go to find fun party supplies.  SucreShop has the cutest wooden utensils you could ask for.  Possibly something that will be used for Miss Nola’s Birthday Party.

I also wanted to let you know that I just recently opened up an Etsy shop, EmbroideredTale.  It’s a work in progress and I need to take more photos, but it’s been fun getting it started!  

I hope you enjoy just a handful of my favorite shops and I’d love to hear what your’s are!